Senior Portrait Spotlight: Christa

Senior model Christa brings her “District Attorney” look to the set. (photo credit: Christoph Doerbeck)

One of the great things about senior portrait sessions is that they give us lots of time to play with every aspect of creating the image. Lighting, makeup, hair, wardrobe – they are all up for grabs. A change in any one of those things can change the entire feel of your image. (And that’s before we even do any post-processing … the part we call the magic.) In just one shoot, Christa rocked her prom dress, two different jeans-and-a-tee looks, a flowered sundress, and the tailored professional look you see here.

We had a blast. But then, we always do at our senior sessions. We crank up the tunes (model’s pick, of course) and snap away until we have lots of great images to choose from. We might even dance a little if the bass is really jumpin’. You can see your images right away on our huge in-studio monitor. No wondering whether you nailed that last pose or not. You either know for sure you did – or you get to try it again.

Our in-studio monitor means you see your images right away. (photo credit: Christoph Doerbeck)

We never rush you through your session, and we never compromise on quality. We respect your feedback. So if we love a shot, but you don’t, we do it again. And we keep at it until you have a portfolio of images you love.

Then the really fun stuff starts: editing. We believe in collaborative editing. What does that mean? It means we edit while you watch. You get to tell us what you like and what you don’t. Have a faint blemish or scar that you want eliminated? You can make sure we don’t miss it. Have a distinctive beauty mark that you’re “famous” for? You can make sure we leave it in.

Editing is also where we get to apply effects and shading to take the good images from the camera and turn them into great … stunning … jaw-droppingly awesome senior portraits. Christa’s gorgeous long red hair and intense, dark eyes call for some drama. And editing is where we get to take the image you see on our in-studio monitor above and turn it into this:

The play of light and shadow emphasizes Christa’s strength and intensity.

This is a young woman on the cusp of adulthood, who is ready to go out and take on the world. And we have no doubt she will.

In spite of all the great images we captured of Christa during her studio shoot, we’re not done with her yet. She still has her outdoor session to go.

In fact, every one of our high school seniors gets both a studio shoot and an outdoor shoot. And truthfully, most of the images that families order as prints come from that outdoor shoot. It’s where we capture what you’d probably call the more traditional senior portrait images.

Why spend the time on a studio shoot then? For one thing, it’s fun. It’s a confidence-booster, too, to see yourself on our big screen, looking awesome. When people see how good they can look, even the most camera-shy come out of their shell. And, most importantly, an extra shoot means you’re more comfortable during that second shoot. The more comfortable you are, the better your images will be.

It’s how we capture images that let you shine through. No awkward poses. No cattle-call feeling that someone is waiting in line behind you, so you’d better hurry up. We put our whole focus on you, so that your senior portrait portfolio becomes a showcase for your personality and a keepsake to treasure forever.

If you’d like to see what we can do for you, we invite you to schedule a free, no-obligation chat. We’ll tell you everything you ever wanted to know about our senior portrait program. (Probably even a little bit more.) We’ll explain why we never charge a session fee. And you can get to know us a little and decide if we’re the senior portrait studio for you.

Walter Schnecker, CPP, CPC, CCH

Walter Schnecker is the owner of C1M Photography, LLC in Amherst, NH. He loves senior photo sessions, because they give him a chance to experiment, play, and draw on his fashion photography background.